Labcyte Inc. Closes $5.3 Million Financing

January 08, 2013 01:09 PM Eastern Standard Time

SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Labcyte Inc., a privately-held company advancing acoustic liquid
handling, today announced it has closed a Series D financing led by the
healthymagination fund, a part of GE Ventures. The $5.3 million round
also included current Labcyte investors: Abingworth, Alloy Ventures,
Cross Atlantic Partners, Delphi Ventures, H&Q Healthcare Investors
(NYSE:HQH) and H&Q Life Sciences Investors (NYSE:HQL).

Labcyte will use the investment to continue to expand its revolutionary
liquid handling systems based on the use of acoustic energy to precisely
and accurately transfer liquids. Combined with its automation platforms
and novel software capabilities, Labcyte’s award-winning products offer
unsurpassed control over the steps that are the backbone of life science
research, molecular medicine, drug discovery and diagnostic programs.
Since acoustic dispensing transfers liquids without contact and
eliminates the use of pipettes and their associated problems, data
quality and reliability are significantly improved while costs are
substantially reduced. The Labcyte system allows for the ability to
transfer very low volumes of liquids, resulting in further cost savings
by minimizing the use of reagents, while conserving precious samples. It
also provides the capability to miniaturize assays and thereby increase
productivity and through-put, enabling significant advances in a wide
range of life science applications.

“Labcyte’s acoustic liquid handling products are well-established
globally, with customers including pharmaceutical, biotechnology,
diagnostic and contract research companies along with academic
institutions. Our systems are being employed to further personalized
medicine with multiple applications in genomics, proteomics, diagnostics
and cell health,” said Mark Fischer-Colbrie, CEO and president of
Labcyte. “Closing the funding will further enable us to add to our
product lines and accelerate our growth.”

The investment in Labcyte reflects GE’s continuing interest in life
science tools, medical diagnostics solutions and the growing area of
personalized medicine. The healthymagination fund is the healthcare
investing group of GE Ventures and part of GE’s $6 billion
healthymagination initiative, a global commitment to deliver better
health to more people.

”We are very pleased to add GE to our investor group,” said
Fischer-Colbrie. “It’s a reflection of the high level of interest in the
current broad-based and future uses of acoustic dispensing and the
continued rapid adoption of products that can have a dramatic impact in
life science.”

Rafael Torres, healthymagination fund leader, GE Ventures said,
"Innovations and research platforms, like Labcyte, are vital to
improving healthcare quality and affordability. We are excited to invest
and support Labcyte, a company positioned to serve a rapidly growing
market, as it expands the breadth of its product portfolio."

About Labcyte

Labcyte, a global biotechnology tools company headquartered in
Sunnyvale, California, is revolutionizing liquid handling. Echo® liquid
handling systems use sound to precisely transfer liquids without contact
eliminating the use of pipettes. Labcyte instruments are used worldwide
throughout the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology firms, contract
research organizations and academic institutions. Our customers work
across a wide spectrum of scientific research including drug discovery,
genomics, proteomics, diagnostics, personalized medicine and imaging
mass spectrometry. Labcyte has 62 global patents, along with additional
filings. For more information, please visit www.labcyte.com.

About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter. The best people and the best
technologies taking on the toughest challenges. Finding solutions in
energy, health and home, transportation and finance. Building, powering,
moving and helping to cure the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE
works. For more information, visit the company's website at www.ge.com.